Corgi from Conshohocken gains fame for Wawa hoagie Halloween costume

A Conshy corgi who makes a real good Shorti is getting a lot of attention online thanks to a Wawa-theme Halloween costume.

Paul Watsko, 36, of Conshohocken, unleashed his corgi, Miles, on Reddit on Sunday in a post on the Philadelphia Subreddit showing the dog donning a hoagie costume, complete with receipt. The post had about 3,000 upvotes as of midday Tuesday, and more than a few delighted reactions from Reddit users.

Previously, on Friday, Adam Tracey, owner of Pooch Patrol Dog Walking & Pet Sitting in Conshohocken, posted a photo of Miles in his getup to Facebook as part of a dog costume contest the business is holding. That image as of Tuesday had 2,500 likes, 3,000 comments, and 6,400 shares, and had reached about 870,000 Facebook users, Tracey said. Wawa has since reached out in approval of the costume and asked the use the pup’s photo for marketing.

“Any time we walk him around Conshy, he brings smiles to people’s faces,” Watsko said of the 2½-year-old pup. “We’re glad he’s getting his five minutes of fame. ”

It took a little work to get there, though. The costume is a custom affair made by Watsko and his wife, who sewed up a vinyl suit for Miles and added printed Wawa logos to replicate a hoagie wrapper. The pair, Watsko said, rewarded Miles with plenty of Cheerios — one of the dog’s favorite treats — during the fitting process to make the experience a positive one.

Like every hoagie from Wawa, the costume also includes a numbered receipt and ingredient list. Miles’ order number is his birthday, Feb. 14, or “214” for theme’s sake, and the print date, 4/30/17, is the date the dog went home with the Watskos. Ingredient-wise, Watsko opted for elements of Miles’ personality, like “fun-loving,” “affectionate,” and “stubborn.”

“Intelligence creates opinions, and he is a very smart dog,” Watsko said. “He is going to have an opinion. ”

While Watsko grew up with Wawa, the idea to make up Miles as a sandwich actually came from his nephew, who sometimes refers to the dog as a hoagie due to his size. At 40 pounds, Miles is a little bigger than your average corgi, and was the biggest pup in his litter. The opposite of a runt? Well, there’s no official term, but hoagie seems fitting.

Miles made his real-world debut with his Shorti suit over the weekend at Providence Animal Center’s Bark in the Park event in Media. Watsko even dressed as a Wawa employee, but said no one even noticed his costume because Miles stole the show.

He added that he and his wife will walk the dog around Conshy in costume this week to celebrate Halloween.

Incidentally, Miles isn’t the only Wawa Shorti dog walking around this Halloween. Another pup, Mumbles, took home a prize at the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society’s Mutt Strut at the Navy Yard over the weekend.

Mumbles, unfortunately, did not immediately respond to request for comment. But he is a good boy, yes he is.

Now, Miles is in the running for a $50 PetSmart gift card as part of a the Pooch Patrol contest, Watsko said. The winner there will be decided this week, but if Miles doesn’t come out on top thanks to his Wawa getup, the Watskos are still victorious.

“We get to come home to him every day,” Watsko said. “So we feel like winners. ”